Congo's Ebola outbreak spreads to new health zone
DAKAR, Senegal - Congo’s Ebola outbreak has spread to a new health zone in the northeastern province of Ituri, authorities said on Wednesday, as fresh infections underline sustained transmission more than three weeks after the epidemic was declared.
The health ministry said Tchomia, about 31 miles south of the provincial capital Bunia on the shores of Lake Albert, has become the latest affected health zone, bringing the total number of affected zones to 26 nationwide and 18 in Ituri province, which accounts for more than 94% of confirmed cases.
A health zone in Congo’s healthcare system covers a defined area with a network of clinics and a referral hospital.
The government’s latest situation report said 37 new confirmed cases, including 12 deaths, were reported in the previous 24 hours, all in Ituri.
The outbreak has so far recorded 635 confirmed cases and 127 deaths across three eastern provinces.
There have also been 19 cases and two deaths in neighboring Uganda
The epidemic, caused by the rare Bundibugyo strain of the virus, for which there is no approved vaccine or specific treatment, was declared on May 15. It has since spread across Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu, regions marked by insecurity, displacement and cross-border movement.
Eight patients were newly declared recovered, bringing the total number of recoveries to 30, while treatment activities have been launched at Ebola centers in Bunia and Rwampara, the report said.
WHO: Testing stalled in 3 Congo labs due to shortages
Three laboratories in the Democratic Republic of Congo have run out of supplies to test for Ebola, the World Health Organization said, as the outbreak continues to grow.
In the latest situation report, dated June 7 and released on Tuesday night, the agency said laboratories in Bukavu and Lwiro in South Kivu province, and Goma in North Kivu, had run out of stock. It said that the labs were awaiting the arrival of reagents - substances required to run the tests - to resume work on backlogged samples.
The WHO did not immediately respond to requests for comment about how many samples were awaiting testing or if supplies had arrived since the data was collected.
Testing began slowly because the widely available Ebola tests did not detect the Bundibugyo virus. But it has ramped up since, led by experts at the Institut National de Recherche Biomédicale in Kinshasa. However, challenges with access remain due to insecurity and armed conflict in the worst-hit provinces.
Professor Jean-Jacques Muyembe, director of INRB, said that testing capacity was now much improved, increasingly available in regional laboratories, which were able to report results on the same day.
At an online briefing on Wednesday, he said other parts of the response were not keeping up, particularly around the necessity of working with and gaining the trust of the affected communities to help them protect themselves - a lesson learned, he said, after tackling 16 other Ebola outbreaks in the country.
“For the moment, I am a bit disappointed, because I don’t see in practice these experiences on the ground,” he said. “It seemed we have to learn again how to involve the community in this outbreak.”
US announces additional $20M for Ebola response
The U.S. State Department said on Wednesday it would provide an additional $20 million to help fight the Ebola outbreak, bringing its total direct support to more than $220 million.
The money will support preparedness efforts in Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, and South Sudan, including for national emergency operations centers, as well as surveillance, testing, border screening and infection prevention and control, the department said in a statement.
It will also help countries distribute critical commodities and manage Ebola patients, it said.
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This story was originally published June 10, 2026 at 3:22 PM.